Slipcovers by Shelley

Water at the Cabin

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So I haven’t posted about the cabin lately, because summer was crazy with lots of trips and we didn’t have as much time up there as I thought we would to do projects. Last month Heber tore his ACL playing soccer, so my hopes and dreams of projects at the cabin were not going to come true.

When we bought our little “fixer upper” the water wasn’t working and we had no idea why and couldn’t figure it out while we were under contract because it snowed too much and we couldn’t dig down and fiqure out what the problem was. SO…we went ahead and closed on the cabin in December and hoped we could figure out the problem in the spring. Well the snow didn’t melt until June! Then we had trips to the beach and races to run, plus Heber decided it was over his head and didn’t think he could figure it out.

I still had my hopes up in July that we could get the water on….all winter we had been hauling our own water up and having the boys pee out back. Then in the middle of July Heber tore his ACL, so then I knew for sure it wasn’t going to happen. So then I called a local plumber and he had it on and fixed in a day and a half!!! With a hefty bill of $2,100 I couldn’t have been happier. Sometimes it’s just worth it!

kitchen sink

Heber and a few of his buddies made it up to the cabin to do some “man work”. They managed to drop in the cast iron kitchen sink that I picked up used off ksl.com for $45 and install the new faucet that I got for $50 off ksl.com as well.

bathroom sink that got broken

So in the bathroom they did some “man work” as well. In one day they managed to put a hole in the bathroom sink that I was planning on keeping and broke the brand new toilet Heber had just installed the week before. They went and picked out a tiny new vanity sink at Home Depot before they told me about it. It actually will work alot better with storage. I was just trying to use what we had and not completely gut the place.

my new toilet that got broken (don’t tighten the bolts too much it’ll crack the tank)

This happened 5 minutes before they were going to leave. I had someone that was going to stay at the cabin that night, so they had to run back into town and buy a new toilet and install it before they left. Oh did I mention all this “man work” happened about 7 days post knee surgery. Jared had to carry Heber up the 26 stairs to the cabin.

beadboard in the bathroom

Heber is really tired of all the paneling work…so each time we go up, he installs one piece of beadboard in the bathroom. I am trying to be patient. I just want the bathroom finished!!! But at least it’s functional now…the sink, shower and toilet all work!

shower curtain fabric

So I chose this fabric for the shower curtain…it’s turqouise and cream. I can’t wait to make it and get it up there with the dark wood floors, beadboard walls, and silver chandelier over the sink. I can totally envision it already. I just need all the beadboard up so I can paint.

sofa table in family room

So my neighbor Holly gave me this sofa table that I had in the dining room under the window, which I had to move because of the new ottoman/bench thing that I put there instead. So I thought I would have to give the table back because I had no more spots to put it. Then I brought my friend Heather up to show her the cabin while she was in town, and she spotted the table and suggested we put it behind the yellow chair in the family room. It works perfect, because I didn’t have any end tables in there to set anything on.

Camille’s Front Room

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So Camille is my running partner, and she needed help with her front room. So when I went to Reno this summer I went to the fabric store and found this amazing gray paisley for $6/yd. I was inspired and called her and told her that we should do her front room in yellow and gray.

So about a month ago, she came up to the cabin to help me paint the dresser and mirror…and we went to the St. Lawrence thrift store in Heber city, Ut. Her chair was from the free pile out back, and check out the amazing coffee table she picked up for $5 that she painted white.

The couch was from my sister’s yard sale for $20, as was the floral fabric for $2, as were the rectangle pillow forms $1/each. The gray rectangle pillow on the couch was fabric from the trash at the Design company that I asked if I could have. It was just big enough to do the front of that pillow.

The light gray fabric on the couch was from the Step Down Sale at the design company for $3/yd. I love the way it all fell into place!! I could sit in there forever.

Chair Before
Chair after in the gray paisley

Close up of the chair

Couch before

Couch after in a light gray canvas with no skirt.

The whole room put together
Close up of the front of the couch. When I don’t put a skirt on I sew a row of piping along the bottom and then topstitch the seam allowance up, so that it doesn’t fall out.
Close up of the pillows
Chair
Camille chilling in her new room!!

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How I Got Started

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Our wedding

When I got married 13 years ago I inherited an ugly couch, and as a new wife I was determined to make my little dated apartment “cute”. I went out and bought fabric and a pattern for a slipcover. To my dissapointment the fit was horrible and the tuck-in and ties were awful, so I bought more fabric and made the cushions as separate pieces that sat on top of the main body slipcover. I still hated it.

Our house being built

A year later we built our first house, so I headed to the local thrift store and picked up a chair, that I was determined to make a better slipcover for. I had looked at a few pamphlets and books at the fabric store, and thought I had figured out how to make a “custom slipcover”.

The ugly chair that I picked up at the local thrift store. Soon I learned this chair didn’t have good lines. I now would never choose the fluffy back thing.

My first custom slipcover that I made. My recommendation..don’t choose a stripe or plaid for your first slipcover.

My friends and family loved it and started asking me to slipcover their furniture. In the mean time we got pregnant with our first child, and I told my husband when we had babies I would stay home and make slipcovers…he laughed. I had my first “real” client when my baby was 3 months old. I think he forgot how determined and focused I can be when I want something. He has become wiser over the past 13 years.

I still ended up having to go back to work part time as an assistant manager at Bath and Body Works when my baby was 7 weeks old to pay the bills. I did about one to two slipcovers a month during this period for clients. By the time my baby turned a year old, my business had grown enough for me to stay home and sew. So I took a leap of faith and quit my job.

I had a display chair in a few shops (Joanns and Addie Landons) and cards up at the fabric store, and the rest of my business came from word of mouth. All my clients are now from word of mouth, I haven’t had a chair in a store for about 6 years.

My family picture from Christmas last year….my sister is a photographer. You can check out her blog at http://photosbyangie.blogspot.com/

I now have two ladies that help me sew to keep up with my growing business. I try to keep my work schedule to 2-3 days a week, because I now have 3 children. So I have my “mom” days and my “work” days. My husband is a fireman and has 4 days off in a row, so he watches the kids on my “work” days.

I have lots of designer clients, and regular repeat clients. With having the extra income I was determined to put it to good use and get out of debt. So slowly over the past 10 years I’ve paid off the basement, the cars, and the house…yep the house!!! Now I am working on paying off the cabin we just bought. Remember how focused I said I was? My friends think I am crazy. I might be a little bit, but I like to call it “determined” not crazy.

So if you want to learn to make slipcovers to redecorate on a budget or you want to make some extra money…learning the art of slipcovering is an invaluable tool and skill. If you love fabric and decorating and have some sewing skills you will become obsessed with the possibilites of what you can do with an ugly piece of furniture. You will become a regular at the local thrift store and craigslist.

My “How to Slipcover Video” walks you through the basics of slipcovering and will give you the skills to slipcover just about anything. I teach you to make a slipcover by pinning it on inside out. I was self taught and learned through trial and error over the past 11 years… with the DVD you can learn without going through the heartache and wasted time that I went through. I am now fast at what I do, and with practice you can be too.

So if you want on the wait list for my “how to slipcover” DVD email http://www.blogger.com/heberj1@yahoo.com they are $45 plus $3 shipping. I just took the DVD to get replicated and the covers made…they said 7-10 business days. I’ll email you when they are ready and have you pay via paypal. thanks

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